Car-coupling.



No. 876,500. 'PATENTED JAN. 14,1908. G. E. STARBIRD & G. M. POX.

CAR COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED IEB.4, 1907.

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No. 876,500. PATENTED JAN. 14, 1908. G. B. STARBIRD a; G. M. FOX. OARCOUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED IEB.4.1907.

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UNITED STATES PATENT oEEroE.

GEORGE E. STARBIRD, OF ELMI-IURST, ILLINOIS, AND GEORGE M. FOX, OF OUTBANK, MONTANA.

CAR-COUPLING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 14:, 1908.

Application filed February 4. 1907. smart). 355679.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, GEORGE E. STAR- BIRD and GEORGE M. Fox, citizens ofthe United States, residing, respectively, at Elmhurst, in the county ofDupage and State of Illinois, and at Cut Bank, in the county of .Tetonand State of Montana, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Car-Couplings; and we do declare the following to be a full, clear,and exact description of the invention, such as will enable othersskilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to improvements in car couplings of the Janneytype, particularly with reference to the construction of the knuckle andof improved means for releasing the knuckle and causing the same toswing to open position when uncoupling the cars, and it consists in theconstruction, combination, and arrangement of devices hereinafterdescribed and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure-1 is a side elevation of ourimproved car coupling, showing a portion of the car to which it isattached; Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view of the same, taken onthe plane indicated by the line a-a of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a verticalsectional view of the same. Fig. 4 represents an end elevation of thisimproved coupling applied.

The draw bar is composed of an upper section 1 and a lower section 2,bolted or otherwise suitably secured together, and provided at theirrear ends, on their upper and lower sides, respectively, with shoulders3 to en gage a plate 4 which connects the draft beams 5 and a shoulder6. A look block 7 is pivoted near its rear end, as at 8, in alongitudinal opening 9 in the draw head. Said lock block is provided onone side, near its free end, with a notch 10, and the lower section ofthe draw bar is formed with a shoulder 11 to engage said notch when thelock block is in its lowered, normal osition and assist the pivot 8 towithstand ongitudinal stress on the lock block. Said lock block isprovided on its opposite side near its free end, with a shoulder 12, anda notch 13 immediately in rear of said shoulder. The knuckle 14 isprovided with a rearwardly extending arm 15 to enter a recess 16 in theinner side of the jaw 17. Said arm has a notch 18 to receive theshoulder 12 of the lock block and a shoulder 19 to enter the notch 13 ofsaid lock block. The knuckle is pivotally connected to the said jaw bythe usual pin 20, and when the arm of the knuckle is engaged with theblock, when the latter is lowered and the knuckle closed said lock blockpartially relieves the pin 20 of draft stress, as will be understood.The face 21 of the knuckle is coextensive in height with the aw 17 ofthe knuckle, that is to say, it is formed at its upper and lower sideswith extensions 22, concaved on their inner sides, to bear on the lugs23 which project forwardly from the jaw 17 and receive the pivot pin 20.This greatly strengthens the construction, both of the knuckles and thedraw head and adds very greatly to the durability thereof. At the rearend of the lock block is a lever arm 24 which extends downwardlytherefrom and projects through an 1cgpening 25 in the lower section ofthe draw In the lower section of the drawbar is a recess 26, whichcommunicates with the recess 16 and in which operates the crank arm 27of a rock shaft 28 which is vertically disposed, and journaled in anopening in the lower portion of the draw head. To the lower end of saidrock shaft is secured a rearwardly extending tappet arm 29, which isextended downwardly. Said tappet arm has a forwardly extending portion30, connected by a slack chain 31 to the draw head, to prevent loss ofthe tappet arm should it become casually detached from the rock shaftand the latter become broken.

Under the end of the car is a revoluble and longitudinally movableoperating shaft 32 which is disposed transversely with respect to thecar, extends to one side thereof and is mounted on suitable bearings inhangers or other suitable devices 33, 34. The inner portion of saidshaft, where it travels through the bearings 34, is angular and on saidangu lar portion is loosely mounted a lock-blockoperating arm 35, whichhas an angular opening to receive the angular portion of said chain 38to the lever arm 24 of the lock block. The operating shaft is alsoprovided with a tappet arm 39 which is fixed thereto.

The operation of our invention is as follows1-1n order to uncouple, theoperating shaft is partly turned, which may be done by a man stationedat one side of the car, out of the way, to cause the arm to draw uponthe chain 33 and the lever arm 24 and hence cause the free end of thelock block to be raised, so as to disengage the arm of the knuckle. Suchpartial rotary movement of the operating shaft brings its key or spline37 into alinement with the notch 36 of the bearing 33, and the saidshaft is then moved longitudinally, inwardly, to cause its tappet arm toengage that of the crank shaft, and partly turn said crank shaft so asto cause its crank arm to turn, and by so doing, also cause the knuckleto be positively turned to open or uncoupled position. The length of thespline is such that it remains in the notch 36 when the operating shaftis thus moved inwardly and coacts with said notch to lock the shaftagainst rotation and hence to keep the lock block in elevated positionuntil the knuckle has been turned to open position. The operating shaftmust then be moved outwardly to withdraw its tappet arm from that of theknuckle-operating rock shaft, and to Withdraw its spline from the notch36, and permit the arm 39 to drop and the arm 35 to rise, to slacken thechain 38 and permit the free end of the lock block to drop on the arm ofthe knuckle, ready to rengage said arm and lock the knuckle when thelatter is automatically turned to coupling or closed position, as willbe understood.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is In a car coupling of the Janney type, incombination with the drawhead and the pivoted knuckle having the arm, alock block in the drawhead mounted for vertical pivotal movement, arevoluble element to open the knuckle andhaving a tappet arm, and arevoluble and longitudinally movable operat ing element, having aconnection with the lock block to operate the latter and also having atappet arm to coact with that of the revoluble knuckle-opening element.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands, each in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE E. STARBIRD. GEO. M. ,FOX.

Witnesses to the signature of George E. Starbird:

JoHN E. HosmR, G. E. RODGER. Witnesses to the signature of George M.Fox:

B. S. HARDACER, CHAS. N. THOMAS.

